January 6, 2012
Dear Emmanuel Brothers and Sisters,
This Sunday, January 8, is the First Sunday after the Epiphany:
The Baptism of Our Lord Jesus Christ. We celebrate Holy Eucharist,
Rite I at 8:00 a.m., and Holy Eucharist, Rite II at 10:00 a.m. Our
Baptismal Covenant, used at each service in place of the Nicene Creed,
provides a wonderful opportunity to remind ourselves of the commitment
we make as baptized members of the Body of Christ.
For the liturgical season of Epiphany, seven Sundays in all, we will be
singing new service music for three parts of the Eucharist service at
10:00 am: Glory to God; Holy, holy, holy Lord; and, the Fraction Anthem.
These new settings are from Church Publishing, part of a series called
Enriching Our Worship, which gives parishes a wider choice of music than
found in the familiar Hymnal 1982. The composer is Peter Crisafulli, Minister
of Music at All Saints Episcopal Church in Chevy Chase, MD. The psalmists
call us to "Sing a new song to the Lord" and we hope you will find the music
uplifting and enriching to our worship. Please join the choir in singing as you
feel comfortable doing so.
This Sunday, at each service, we will also dedicate our new Books of
Common Prayer, the wonderful gift to Emmanuel “presented in loving
memory of Charles ‘Pat’ Morgan” by his daughter,” Molly Morgan.
During Adult Forum this Sunday we converse about how Adult Forum
supports the living-out of our mission characterized by our theme,
“Worshipping, Serving, Inquiring Pilgrims.” Jeff Baldwin will moderate
the conversation. I am looking forward to hearing from you!
Sunday school on January 8 for all children will meet on the top floor
of the Parish Hall at 10:00. Our theme this Sunday is Baptism. We'll
read the Scripture story (Mark 1:4-11) of John baptizing Jesus and receive
the story to take home for parents to revisit baptism at home. We'll
decorate doves to display during coffee hour. And we will celebrate
Christmas pageant efforts by choosing a pageant photo to paste in our
sketchbooks and write what Christmas means to us. We will gather with
the rest of the congregation for communion.
If you are able to bring a plate of food to share for our 10:00 a.m. coffee hour,
it would be most appreciated.
This coming week…
The Seekers meet on Tuesday, January 10 at 7:00 a.m. to conclude their
discussion of Richard Rohr’s Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two
Halves of Life, and to discuss future topics. Following Seekers, at
approximately 8:10 a.m., we offer Morning Prayer in the church sanctuary.
Education for Ministry (EfM) meets on Tuesday, January 10, at 11:00 a.m.
in the Parish Hall dining room.
Also on Tuesday, January 10, the Vestry meets at 7:00 p.m. to work on the
2012 budget. We are grateful to everyone who was able to turn in their
pledge for 2012, thus giving the Vestry a more stable footing from which
to plan for the coming year.
*Kim Tapper, of A Place to Be, invites you to an inspirational retreat from
January 13th-15th. Entitled “Life Beyond Diagnosis: You Are Not Your Illness,”
the retreat offers solid coaching for people dealing with a “new normal” created by
a medical challenge who seek to recreate their lives. Brochures are available
in the back of the church, or visit the organization’s website: www.aptblifecoaching.com.
For all you do…
Gratitude is offered to Carol O’Malley and Dody Vehr, our intrepid Altar Guild
volunteers during the busy month of December! In addition, we are most grateful
to Frank Zureick and to Helen Brettell and Carol O’Malley, who provided us
with delicious fare at our coffee hours last Sunday. The festive 2012 cookies at
the 10 a.m. coffee hour were especially delightful!
Thank you to everyone who took poinsettias from the church last week to bring
holiday cheer to friends and neighbors in our community.
Future possibilities…
Did you ever meet Dr. King? Next Sunday, January 15, we will share “personal”
(broadly defined) experiences of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. during Adult Forum.
If you have an experience to share, let Steve Hallmark know (703-447-7367).
In 2012, our Healing Services will take place on the third Monday of the month
rather than the second Monday, as we did last year. The next Healing Service
will be at noon on Monday, January 16.
Do you have digital photos taken at the Christmas Eve pageant? If you do,
please email them to George Devorshak (georged2@verizon.net) or Rick Buckley
(buckleyrf@gmail.com) to be considered for inclusion in Emmanuel’s new website!
We want to share images of this wonderful family service with our website visitors.
For all families with children from young through high school age, you may already
be thinking about 2012 summer camp plans. In support of planning ahead, for
the next month, Mary Ann Rudy will publish information in this space about 2012
Shrinemont and Kanuga family and children's summer camps. Many conversations
in a variety of dioceses have convinced me that such camps greatly assist families and
young people in strengthening their faith for life.
On January 26-28, our senior warden, Hurst Groves, and I will be attending the
217th Annual Council of the Diocese of Virginia at the Hyatt Regency in Reston,
where we will celebrate the ministry of the Rt. Rev. David C. Jones and attend to
the annual business of our diocese.
And, speaking of Saturday, the 28th of January, Helen Brettell writes to invite us
all to a second “Arts at Emmanuel” evening on that date. This evening of
shared entertainment by willing musicians of various backgrounds along with a
shared pot luck supper promises to be fun for all! Please tell David Sheronas
(dsheronas@verizon.net) or Helen Brettell (540-270-3993) whether you are
interested and also whether you know of anyone in our community who has a
musical talent and would share it!
Grace Church, The Plains, writes to tell us about concerts on the 29th of January,
Sunday, at 5:00 p.m. and on the 26th of February, Sunday, at 5:00 p.m. Please
contact Grace Church, 6507 Main Street, The Plains, at 540-253-5177 or visit
www.gracetheplains.org for more details.
Grateful blessings always,
Anne
